Yet another idea that came to me in the middle of the night and refused to let me sleep.

This was originally supposed to be a nice little oneshot with an ambiguous ending. Well, that may have changed in the course of writing and beta'ing. We'll see how the muses hold up.

The title, while not one of my favorites, was appropriate. It is derived from one of Jayne's lines in the film. 'Now that she's a killer woman we ought be bringing her tea and dumplings.'

Thanks to Tamsibling for the beta.

--------------- Title: Killer Woman

Rating: PG

Synopsis: River’s nightmare turns into reality as she is triggered again.

Author’s Notes: Post Movie Disclaimer: This story is not meant to infringe on the copyright of any person or company related to the trademarked characters and situations depicted in the Serenity movie or Firefly series. I make no money from this. Only done for fun – and a desperate craving to have more stories told about this wonderful ‘verse Joss Whedon created.

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Killer Woman

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“She goes all woolly again we’re gonna have to put a bullet to her.”

The memory of Jayne’s words flowed through her mind like a mantra. But it would not happen. It couldn’t. She wouldn’t let it. Another time, maybe. When she was done with her current task.

She gazed unflinchingly down at the blood-covered sheets.

Blood. It flowed hot and sticky over her fingers as she plunged the kitchen knife into his chest over and over until startled eyes closed and his body went limp. Crimson spilled from the corners of his mouth and down his chin where he’d tried to take a breath through pierced lungs.

Later, she would remember the annoyed look on his face as she’d interrupted an intimate moment. Then the startled gasp as the knife pierced his chest the first time, the disbelieving look of pain as the blade struck a vital organ on the way in, and yet more on the way out, the words he struggled to say each time the motion was repeated – and the screams. They would echo in her mind long after her family was dead and buried.

With a detachment born only of intense training, she completed her task. He knew too much about her, about the program, about how to infiltrate the most protected and secret place to ever exist in the Core worlds.

It didn’t matter his relation to her, how much closer than siblings they were, how much he had protected her, kept her safe. It was her duty and she was to complete it.

Rage burned through her veins as well as disappointment that she had completed her task so swiftly. She’d known he wouldn’t, couldn’t put up much of a fight. He was weak where she was strong. He had freed her and as she’d pierced his pale skin again and again, she was not surprised to find that he did not regret that choice at the end of his life.

River moved on to his mate, screaming over her lover’s dead body. Her orders were clear. Dispatch anyone who got in her way, or who witnessed her mark’s execution. This girl put up more of a fight than did the man, the shock having faded to intense fear, but it didn’t matter, she was no challenge for the government trained assassin.

Kaylee’s blood mingled with her lover’s on the sheets. The knife dripped with it, River’s hands were covered with it. Once her task was completed, she cocked her head and stared down at them with a cold detachment.

But suddenly, with no warning, the veil covering River’s narrowed eyes lifted and she stared in shock at the horrific death she had caused. The weapon slid from her open palm to strike the floor with an unnatural clang as she flung herself onto her brother’s chest.

River screamed and cried out until she was hoarse but he would not wake. He would never wake again.

With a short, breathy gasp, River bolted upright in bed, limbs tangled in bed sheets and hair sticking wildly to her sweat-soaked cheeks. Her heart thudded so sharply against her ribs that she thought it would leap out of her chest. The fog settled around her mind and no matter how many times she shook her head or blinked her eyes, it would simply not clear.

It took a long time before she was able to control her breathing and her eyes stared at her closed bunk door for every one of those minutes. Legs shaking, she pushed herself to her feet and bolted into the hallway. It took only a brief moment of hesitation and then she had crossed the short distance to her brother’s room. Another minute later, she had expertly picked the lock.

Swallowing thickly, River slid the door open, her body tense, coiled, ready to see what she knew could not be. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness of the room as they settled on the couple lying entwined on the bed.

River swallowed thickly as she stared at the rise and fall of her brother’s chest. Kaylee moved, moaned lightly and settled her cheek back against his shoulder, eyes closed, mouth turned up into a contented smile even in sleep.

She stood and watched them for a long time, burning the image of their peaceful slumbering into her mind, frantically trying to replace the disturbing, lifeless image of her nightmare. River released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding and backed out of the doorway. With one last look at the sleeping couple, she slid the door shut and ran a hand through her stringy hair.

It was just a dream.

“It was too vivid to be a dream,” River muttered as she made her way toward the bridge. The black welcomed her with open arms as she sat slowly into the pilot’s seat and stared out into it. The stars twinkled in the nothingness and River felt safe, at home, yet something gnawed at her, tugged and tugged until her breath caught in her lungs.

Something was out there, waiting just out of her reach. She could feel it as certainly as she knew how much her brother loved Kaylee, or how much Mal loved Inara. River huffed in annoyance and glanced down at the dark screen resting in front of her.

With a heavy sigh she flipped on the Cortex and began scanning news reports. Even two months after Miranda the fallout from that little piece of information was still raging through the Core worlds. Slim fingers danced across the screen, changing the source of the feeds. She searched frantically, uncertain for what she was so desperately looking, until her slim fingers paused over a very non-descript image of the most recent address from Parliament.

At once, River’s eyes glazed and her body tensed. Her breathing evened as she read the words embedded into the picture that no one but her could see. She sat for a moment, her eyes dilating further as the message implanted itself in her brain, instructing her, giving her an order that would end the lives of those she loved most in the ‘verse.

With calm, cool precision, she stood and walked off the bridge, intent on completing her pre-programmed task. River never realized that the nightmare that had woken her from a sound sleep had not been a simple dream, but a premonition of what was to come.

END

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